Total World Tour 2020 Travel

Huffines Middle School, TX to Florence, Italy: approx. 5473 mi

Florence, Italy to Johannesburg, South Africa: approx. 7695 mi

Johannesburg, South Africa to Yellowstone, National Park, WY: approx. 9817 mi

Yellowstone National Park, WY to Nairobi, Kenya: approx. 8847 mi

Nairobi, Kenya to Los Angeles, California: approx. 9653 mi

Los Angeles, California to Cayman Islands: approx. 2481 mi

Cayman Islands to Auckland, New Zealand: approx. 7760 mi

Auckland, New Zealand to Fredericksburg, Texas: approx. 7248 mi

Fredericksburg, Texas to Delta Junction, Alaska: approx. 3836 mi

Delta Junction, AK to Antarctica: approx. 10488 mi

Antarctica to Nara, Japan: approx. 8116 mi

Nara, Japan to St. Vincent and the Grenadines: approx. 8952 mi

St. Vincent and the Grenadines to O’ahu, Hawaii: approx. 6308 mi

O’ahu, Hawaii to Sydney, Australia: approx. 5072 mi

Sydney, Australia to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: approx. 4250 mi

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam to Cape Town, South Africa: approx. 6528 mi

Cape Town, South Africa to Okayama Japan: approx. 8816 mi

Okayama, Japan to Greece: approx. 5745 mi

Greece to Halmstead, Sweden: approx. 1680 mi

Halmstead, Sweden to Jamestown, Virginia: approx. 4106 mi

Jamestown, Virginia to Huffines Middle School: approx. 1357 mi

TOTAL DISTANCE TRAVELED!

Approx. 134228 miles, 216019 km, or maybe more!

How much time it SHOULD’VE taken (by plane):

Approx. 314 hr 43min

(without stops, although that’s not how vacations work, it would’ve been a lot longer)

8:30AM Halmstad, Sweden

When: March 13th, 2020 @ 8:30am CST
Where: Halmstad, Sweden
Who: Students (Spanish Speaking)

Right now we are on a mystery Skype call with students learning Spanish in a non-Spanish speaking country. We have learned that they live somewhere in Europe and is not an island. They are in the northern part of Europe. We finally got it! It's Sweden! It is 7 degrees over there and they do not live in the capital of Sweden. They also live near the ocean and in a major city. Halmstad is the city they live in.

7:30AM Skydra, Greece

When: March 13th, 2020 @ 7:30am CST
Where: Skydra, Greece
Who: Teacher

She is in the northern hemisphere. She is in Europe. She is near an ocean. English is not the common language. Her country does not touch the Black Sea, but does touch the Mediterranean Sea. She is in Greece! She is a teacher, but her students cannot come to school due to the Coronavirus. It gets up to 60 degrees Celsius for spring. She hopes the Coronavirus will die due to the heat this summer. She is also curious about Texas and our sports. She has a keen interest in our careers as well. Also, she had questions our time-use of our electronics. She is interested in Greek Mythology, and she knows about Greek history. Everything is closed down due to the Coronavirus. She is very impressive with her Greek language and understanding of it. Custard Phyllo Pie is a very yummy dessert. Interesting, Chios Mastic gum tastes bitter at first, but after chewing it releases cedar and pine flavors. The Greek national plant is the Olive tree. The laurel wreath is a sign of prosperity, victory, and high-status people. She can play the accordion.

κουρασμένος-Tired in Greek

3:00AM Okayama, Japan

When: March 13th, 2020 @ 3:00am CST
Where: Okayama, Japan
Who: Mari Ishii

It is now 3:00am, and we just started a tour with Japan!

We talked to Mari about the culture in Japan and how it's different from American culture. For a little bit, we talked about the different cafes and what they're like. The cakes/sweets there don't have a lot of bright coloring, and they're not really big on sugar. She spoke a little about earthquakes and her experience with one in her life and tsunamis. She started talking about how they only use cash, not Apple Pay there, but if they use Apple Pay, it's very rare in their country. Their traditional food is fish based, because they live on an island, but they have all kinds of food. She talked about the beaches in Japan and how they are not hot spots for tourists. Next, we talked about the different types of transportation, how fast the bullet trains can go, and how the architecture there is very small and compacted. They are in the spring season right now, and they are 14 hours ahead of us. Then she talked about the music they have, and how they have J-Pop, which is Japanese-Pop (like K-Pop). We spoke about the crime rates and different laws our countries have. Mari asked us a question about the World Tour and how long we were doing it. Then, sadly we had to say goodbye.

2:00AM Cape Town, South Africa

When: March 13th, 2020 @ 2:00am CST
Where: Cape Town, South Africa
Who: Julie - connections with touring company

Julie has been teaching 13 year-olds for 4 years. She prefers to teach her students outside to see the animals. She lives in Cape Town, where they generally speak British. Her 14 year-olds learn 3 languages: English, Afrikaans, and German. There are 11 official languages in South Africa. Cape Town is a very populous city full of people and architecture. They eat low-fat and low-carb carbohydrates, meat (like BBQ), and hybrid dishes, such as Dutch cooking mixed with Indian ingredients. Children can go to safaris and see all the 'big' animals. Cities are somewhat like America, except there is a higher rate of crime, and of course the economy is less compared to America's. The closest ocean to her is 5 minutes away by car. It's the Atlantic Ocean, and the Indian Ocean is 3 hours away. It's very diverse including races, languages, religion, culture, and people all together. She describes her country as a 'rainbow' country. You need a visa to visit there, and due to the fact that we are under 18, we of course need an adult to accompany us. Some historical places in Cape Town are the Castle of Good Hope, Sa Cultural History Museum, and King's Blockhouse. Meat is a very big thing in Africa, along with salad and vegetables. The scariest thing she has ever seen is a lion killing a zebra and then devouring it! Table Top Mountains are older than the Rockies and were formed due to plate tectonics.

1:00AM Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

When: March 13th, 2020 @ 1:00am CST
Where: Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
Who: Students

The mystery country is in the northern hemisphere. We asked if the country was by the water, and she said "no." Soon after, we found out they were in Asia. Then we were trying to find the country. Then we asked if it was big or small, and they said ''small.'' Next, when we asked if they were near the China Sea, they said ''yes.'' They were not on an island. The country did not border Thailand. They were in Vietnam! The girl in Vietnem has been home from school for two months because of the Coronavirus outbreak.

12:00AM Sydney, Australia

When: March 13th, 2020 @12:00am CST
Where: Sydney, Australia
Who: Sydney Zoo
Website: https://sydneyzoo.com/

It is now 12:00am and we are Skyping Jess from the Sydney Zoo in Australia. The zoo that she works at holds many traditional animals such as lions, tigers, and koalas! She brought her adorable daughter around who gave her opinion on all the animals and gave us lots of laughs. She led the way to the kangaroos, where we learned about their diet and life style! The area is very open, and you can walk right up the animals and feed them! We got to view the kangaroos up close, and watch them nibble down a carrot. One of the kangaroos had a joey, a baby kangaroo, which we got to view from a distance. We met two other zoo keepers, Kyle and Tiara. Kyle gave us an amazing performance on the didgeridoo. After that, we walked to the Wombat enclosure. Wombats are marsupials and they're native to Australia. They have cute furry coats and a pouch for their babies that faces towards their little tails. We asked to see the dingos, so she took us to the enclosure where we met two dingos named Pocket and Rocket. We viewed a couple other animals like an echidna, emu, goats, a crocodile and a Tasmanian devil! We got to tour an amazing zoo and see the native animals of Australia! Thank you Jess!

10:30PM Kane'ohe, O'ahu, Hawaii, USA

When: March 12th. 2020 @ 10:30pm CST
Where: Kane'ohe, O'ahu, Hawaii, USA
Who: Kim Jones

Right now, we are interviewing Hawaii. It's very humid and sticky. The houses, stores, and buildings are very expensive. If you're an ou door persons, then Hawaii is the best place to visit! There are a lot of mosquitoes there. Even though living or visiting Hawaii can be fun, there are some downfalls. For example, schools are different. But that shouldn't stop you from visiting or living there. Hawaii is known for its beautiful places to see, such as beaches, people, and the culture. Right now, it's currently 5:38 P.M in Kane'oke, Hawaii. They are 5 hours behind us. Some of the best things about Hawaii are the beautiful oceans and equal access. There are no private beaches, so the beaches are open for anyone. The people there are also very nice! No matter where you live, Hawaii will welcome you, and it's still a very nice place to visit. The climate is just the right temperature, and it's very fun for people who enjoy the outdoors. Hawaii is also known for their volcanoes. They can be very dangerous but they help Hawaii grow bigger. Did you know that Hawaii doesn't have snakes? Because of the volcanic eruptions, there aren't many diverse wildlife on land.  Hogs are an invasive species that were brought over to Hawaii and huge rats. People who can't afford a house in Hawaii are force to leave the island. A word used a lot is "cahine," which can be used for anything! Even though, there is little biodiversity, there is still a lot of nature there. The beautiful culture is happy, bright, and welcoming. Hawaii is a great place to vacation! You can enjoy the views, the food, and culture.

8:30PM Saint Vincent & the Grenadines

When: March 12th, 2020 @ 8:30pm CST
Where: Saint Vincent & the Grenadines
Who: Gabrielle Rupard

We are about to talk to Mrs. Rupard's daughter in Saint Vincent & the Grenadines. She is studying to be in the medical field.

It is 9:30 pm. We asked what language they speak and its mainly English with an accent. Now we asked about what the food is like there. She said "basically its KFC and that's it," also sweet potato fries. We are now calling her via Phone because the Skype wasn't very clear. She said that the skin of the sweet potato is poisonous. Ava is now talking about someone eating a part of a yuca fruit that was bad for us humans to eat. They are sold out of bread because of COVID-19. She said that Physiology is her hardest class that she's taking as of right now. She wants to be a pediatrician. I heard her say something about her taking Bio-Physics and Radiology. She is in her first year of medical school I'm sure I probably said that already though. There are waterfalls and spiders, VERY BIG SPIDERS!!!!!  Now she is showing us pictures of the landscape. I think they are very beautiful and cool to look at. She showed us a picture of a lion fish, and they taste very good. I have had them before. Hurricanes are a very big issue, I heard her say. Finally she gave us advice of medical school. She said to "never give up, and keep your grades up."

6:40PM Nara, Japan

When: March 12th, 2020 @ 6:40pm CST
Where: Nara, Japan
Who: Students

This is our next mystery Skype! Our interviewees started out the call trying to figure out our location by asking us if our country's flag has more than two colors, followed by if our country's name started with a vowel, and finally if it was day or night where we were. We just now figured out that they are in Japan by asking them questions such as did their country border a body of water, if their flag has more than two colors, and if they were in Asia. A couple of fun facts about Japan is that they believe that cutting your nails at night will bring good luck, but it may also be a sign that you won't accompany your parents when they die, and that a Maneki-neko cat, known here as the beckoning cat, may bring the owner good luck.